Sprint Vector (PlayStation VR review)

Many moons ago, Nintendo released a game for the NES called Track & Field, and it was a game changer for the system. You had a giant NES mat for running that recognized your steps to make your characters run and jump on the screen. Fast forward to 2018, and I’m going to race right out the gate and say that Survios’ Sprint Vector is pretty damn fun. (Pun intended.) It’s a completely new take on the sports genre since it’s in VR.

Exercise

A word of warning: this game is intense and tests your physical capabilities. If you’re not used to moving your arms around or standing up and indulging in a lot of physical movement, this game might not be for you. You will do a lot of running, jumping, drifting, flying, climbing, and blasting your way through the twelve tracks that they provide. You will definitely be sweating and possibly be even tired after each race, and I love this game because of that. Just make sure you do some stretches before you slip on the PSVR and boot the game. Also, don’t forget to have a good wide area so you don’t smack someone while flailing about.

Controls

The controls for Sprint Vector are fairly simple and not that hard; mastering them is a different story. If you choose to play this, I would highly suggest going through the tutorial as it will prep you for the upcoming races. There are a lot of combination button pushing, along with swinging your arms, but you eventually get the pattern of movement so that you can run and boost your way throughout the game’s races. I’m not sure that anyone else ran into this, but I did have some issues when I was climbing and boost climbing. At times I would try and launch myself when climbing, which you can do, but it sometimes didn’t register me boosting upwards. This would cause me to fall further down the wall as the other racers would overtake me. This was frustrating at times, to say the least.

Hybrid Game

Sprint Vector feels like a great combination of Initial D, Mirror’s Edge,Ninja Warrior, and Mario Kart because of the powers ups. Since you’re racing against either the A.I. or other players, your sense of urgency shoots through the roof when other racers fly past you. Where the Initial D comparison comes in is that you can drift while running. This helps you run around corners quickly so you don’t necessarily have to turn your body like normal (turning made me lose my sense of place in my room at times).

The Mirror’s Edge, Mario Kart,and Ninja Warrior comparison is because of all the different obstacles that can get in your path. While on the beat, there’s a possibility of you getting smashed, hit by traps, falling into pits, or blown away by your opponents that have their own power-ups. This game keeps you on your toes, literally.

Solo and Multiplayer

You will be able to race against the A.I. initially during solo play. The A.I. is seriously forgiving and I didn’t like that. At times, the A.I. would completely stop just to wait for you to catch up, then start running again. Personally, I think that’s terrible since it feels like the A.I. is pitying me because of my inability to keep up. I’d prefer if the A.I. were more merciless and just beat me outright so it shows how terribly I’m doing and where I need to improve; again this is just me.

Multiplayer was actually really fun. The challenge of playing against someone that doesn’t wait for you is where the bread and butter of this game is. Keeping your momentum going while trying not to get blasted off the track or into a pit had me sweating bullets. The online community was also fairly relaxed and I didn’t have any issues with anyone in the lobbies or in the games. We raced against each other and if we lost, we just went to the next game. It’s a completely different vibe when comparing to Call of Duty multiplayer.

Final Reaction

The game is overwhelmingly fun and the twelve tracks that you race on add a variety to it. Sprint Vector actually places you in a television reality contest where you compete against other aliens, and that adds visual entertainment. It has a bit of a learning curve, and if you attempt to just go into the competition without learning the game first, you’re going to have a bad time. I don’t know how many times I can repeat that. It is recommended that you learn how to run and time your controls on the VR sticks first. Other than the minor inconvenience of climbing controls at times, I loved every minute of playing this game, and I think I dropped five pounds because of all the sweating.

About author

Highly sociable and having been entrenched in Nerd\Geekdom since he was a kid, Alger has seen it all. During his spare time he loves to go out clubbing, sing karaoke, and attend parties. This Nerd is no wallflower. He'll always greet you with a warm smile and a drink in hand.